Relocating a Ridgeback
by J.J.M. Fisher
Summary: Romania? Dragons? Norbert? What happened behind the scenes in Book 1? Just a fun little story featuring a too often forgotten Weasley brother.
1. Part 1: Ze Owvl

**Setting: **During Book 1 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

**Disclaimer: **All characters from Harry Potters series are the property of JK Rowling and used without permission. This includes: Ron and Charlie Weasley.

**Reason for this Fanfic:** I am the type of person that always wonders what happens 'behind the scenes'...you know, the part that is left to your imagination? So here is my very first _Charlie Weasley_ fanfiction that deals with what I imagined happened 'behind the scenes' in Book 1.

**Date Written:** 9 April 2003

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**Relocating a Ridgeback**

**Part 1: Ze Owvl**

It was late afternoon on the Transylvanian Basin, and there were dark, heavy clouds on the eastern horizon over the distant Carpathian Mountains. Even though it was spring in Romania, the temperature of the air was dropping quickly. Though Kalle Oskar was not dressed for cold in her hide pants and sleeveless shirt, the chill or the new wind did not bother her. Her and her crew of six experienced dragon handlers had just finished herding a Romanian Longhorn back into the preserve and away from the muggle town of Sibiu where it had wandered. Luckily, none of them had been seriously injured, but Kalle was sporting a new bruise on the inside of her right arm where the Longhorn's tail had slipped passed her defensives and Gregor had to go visit the Mediwizard for burnt hands.

Kalle left the main building of the preserve, which housed the offices and hospital and walked across the compound to the dormitories. Even though she could spell herself clean, Kalle had taken a liking to long, hot muggle showers and she knew that would relax her tense muscles. Working with dragons was not an easy task; it was like working with a giant five-year-old who could breath fire. Not that Kalle would change her occupation; she enjoyed her job and did not think that was anything else like it in the world. After all, the Romania preserve was one of the last places that European dragons could live without being slaughtered.

If you can keep the dragons _in_ the preserve.

The young woman chuckled and looked up at the horizon one more time. There was definitely a storm brewing in the east, and from the look of the ominous clouds, it would be a bad one. Just as she was about to enter the dormitory, Kalle's attention was drawn by a gorgeous snowy owl who suddenly perched on a chair near the door. Large yellow eyes studied Kalle for a moment and then the owl gave a deep, throated _hoo?_

"My, you are a pretty owvl," Kalle complimented. She had never seen that owl before, but she guessed it belonged to one of the preserve members' family. There was a letter tied to the owl's leg. "May I?" The snowy owl willingly brought its leg forward and Kalle quickly untie it. The only thing written on the small, somewhat crumpled envelope was _Charlie_.

Kalle grinned. "So you are vooking for Charlie Veasley?" The owl gave a dignified affirmative hoot and blinked. "Zen you better stay here for avhile. He is still out in ze preserve, but if you vood like, I can fly out and get him?" The owl gave one bob of its head and replied with another _hoo_. Kalle nodded as well. "I vill be vight back, zen. Oh, if it starts vaining, you are free to go inside. My voom is the second on the left and Charlie's is the next vone."

The owl blinked slowly as Kalle disappeared inside the dormitory to fetch her broomstick from her room. It was an reliable Nimbus One Thousand, old now that the Two Thousand series came out last fall. Once outside, she jumped on her broomstick and pushed off the ground. The compound was left as she soared high into the air, scanning what she could see of the Transylvanian Basin for any sign of Charlie's team. From what she had heard that morning before they had left, Charlie's team was going to make sure a mating flight between two Ukrainian Ironbellies did not turn ugly.

And the Ironbellies were kept in the northeastern section of the preserve. She swung her Nimbus in that direction and her broomstick sped quickly over the treetops. After a few minutes, Kalle caught the first sign of an Ironbelly, the loud trumpet-like roar that seemed to be echoing in an iron canyon. It was best not to attract a mating dragon's attention, especially one a broomstick where it was hard to out fly the dragon. Kalle immediately dove into the cover of the trees, ducking the thick branches, and landed on the leaf-covered floor. She crouched on the ground to look for footprints, as flares were never a good idea on a dragon preserve, and she found a faint indentation. It was an adult male, by the size, so she surmised that Charlie's team had passed that way recently. She slipped through the woods in the same direction, pausing now and then to be sure the Ironbellies were not too close.

Five minutes later, she caught sight of her target. Charlie Weasley's red hair could be seen through the trees, and Kalle smiled. She whistled lightly, so not to startle the team into spelling her, and then approached. Charlie's brow was furled slightly as he shifted his attention from the forest (and the loud snorting of the Ironbellies only about a kilometer away) to her. Even with the darken sky and thick canopy above them, it was easy to see the concentration on the British wizard's face.

"Is something wrong at the compound, Kalle? Or the Hatchery?" he asked in a low voice. He waved his hand to his seven team members for them to keep alert as he walked over to Kalle. Kalle shook her head, chin length black hair bouncing.

"Nozing at ze compound or ze Hatchery, Charlie. But a strange owvl arrived at ze dormitory vith a letter to you. I vas insure if it vas urgent but ze owvl seemed to zink it vas." Kalle told him. She had been speaking English since she was thirteen, but her voice still had a Romanian accent to it. Charlie did not seem to notice it. He nodded and took the offered envelope. Quickly he opened it and scanned the short letter, an amused grin suddenly appearing on his freckled face…a face so covered with freckles that it gave the illusion of a tan. His chuckled aroused Kalle's curiosity.

"Vas it important?"

"It is from my youngest brother, Ron, who is a first year at Hogwarts. It seems that an old friend of mine has acquired a Norwegian Ridgeback egg and it hatched. Ron asked if I could take the Ridgeback off their hands before someone discovers there is an illegal dragon at the school."

"Hmm…but howv can you get a Ridgeback from England to Romania vizout drawving attention?" Kalle demanded. Charlie pocketed the letter and shrugged.

"I think we should go see the Warden about this," Charlie suggested. "If I cannot think of a way, I am sure he will. The old bugger loves these animals even more than I do."

Kalle raised an eyebrow. "Ve?"

The red-head flashed one of his charming smiles. "Warden Timberdrake likes dark-haired Romanian women more than he likes red-headed English men."

Kalle caught the teasing tone of his voice and chuckled. "Good point, I zink. Oh, by ze vay. Ze owvl is vaiting for your reply to ze letter." Charlie merely nodded at one of his team members, a short man with scars covering his face from an old dragon incident, approached.

"Charlie, the Ironbellies have returned to their lair."

"Alright, then our babysitting is over. The female should lay a clutch by fall, and the eggs should be hardened by next spring. Let us return to the compound before that nasty storm breaks," Charlie ordered calmly. The wizard nodded and went to tell the others on the team as Charlie turned back to Kalle. "I'll write Ron back tonight after we get the go-ahead from Timberdrake. You going back by broom?"

One of the two most predictable things about Charlie Weasley was his sense of humor, which he often shared by teasing his team members and other dragon keepers. The other was his obsession with the wizarding sport Quidditch. Kalle was tempted to stick her tongue out at the British wizard, but refrained as the other seven dragon keepers joined them.

"No. I vill Apparate vith you and your team," she replied calmly. She moved her Nimbus to her other hand and nodded.

"Everyone ready?" Charlie asked. He received affirmatives from the seven wizards on his team. "When we reach the compound, you can go wash up and get some dinner."

"A large mug o' mulled mead sounds good to me," an Irish wizard commented with a broad grin.

"Right-o."


	2. Part 2: Ze Bet

**Part 2: Ze Bet**

Kalle fixed the compound in her mind and the next moment the dark Transylvanian forest was replaced with the landscaped lawn of the compound. Charlie was still next to her, but the other wizards were already strolling to the dormitories. Charlie indicated the main building with his hand, and they walked up the path towards it. There was a loud rumbling from the dark gray clouds above them, and suddenly large drops of rain splattered down on them. They broke into a run and Charlie jerked open the door as they slipped inside, soaked.

"I sure hope Timberdrake is in his office." The wizard wiped water from his forehead with his hand. "And has some towels. I am drenched!"

Kalle laughed as she shook her arms and water droplets flew everywhere. "Zat is Romanian veather. It snovs in ze vinter and rains in ze summer, but I love it."

"It is kind of like England in that way." Charlie led the way down the hall of offices, nearly slipping as his wet shoes found no traction on the polished floor. Kalle grabbed his arm but slipped as well, and they caught themselves just in time to prevent a nasty spill. "Cursed floors" the Weasley mumbled under his breath.

The door to the Warden's office was closed, but light could be seen through the space beneath it. Charlie knocked on the wood door with his knuckles, and they could hear an exasperated sigh from inside.

"What?" a deep, agitated voice demanded after a brief moment of silence.

"Eh, it is Charlie Weasley and Kalle Oskar," the dragon handler explained.

"Oh, do come in!" the voice was suddenly more friendly, and Charlie opened the door.

The office was the largest on the compound, though that did not say much, and was definitely not the neatest. There was one desk, one chair for visitors, and the walls were covered with books, scrolls, parchments, and strange artifacts that depicted dragons. Meldon Timberdrake himself was an imposing figure and his six feet five inch frame was evident even when he remained seated (as he did now). His once brown hair was now completely dark gray, and the right side of his face was criss-crossed with scars, but his blue eyes were as sharp as ever. Despite his age, Timberdrake was even more muscular and robust than in his youth, fitting his surname well. It was obvious just from his appearance why he was considered the greatest dragon keeper in history, and some of the stories of him wrestling dragons might also be true. One could never tell with those types of things.

"What is it you two young wizards came to talk to me about?" Timberdrake's voice boomed pleasantly, a hint of a smile at the corners of his lips. A resounding rumble from the thunder outside could be heard through the walls and seemed to be in perfect timing with the Warden's speech.

"Well, you see, Timberdrake, I received a letter from my youngest brother and there appears to be a baby dragon at Hogwarts that is almost too big to hide," Charlie began to explain. Kalle could see that he was scratching the back of his hand, something he only did when he was slightly nervous.

To Charlie's relief, the Warden seemed very interested. "A baby dragon, eh? What type is it?"

"A Norwegian Ridgeback."

Timberdrake leaned back in his chair, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "It has been almost ten years since the last Ridgeback was relocated to this preserve, and the Ridgebacks are one of the slowest dragons to reproduce. Introducing a new, young drake—It is a drake, right?—to the Ridgeback population here would increase the chance of little Ridgebacks within the next decade or so."

Charlie nodded, a relieved smile on his freckled face. "Great. I will write Ron back to set up a day for the Ridgeback to be picked up."

"And how do you suppose to do that, my boy?" Timberdrake's blue eyes were sparkling with interest. Charlie paused, eyes scanning the office as he tried to think of a way.

"Charlie," Kalle suddenly spoke up as she remembered something that might help. "Didn't you tell me zat you have some friends coming to visit soon? From England?"

"Yes…" the red-headed dragon keeper said slowly, suddenly seeing where she was going. "And they could pick up the Ridgeback and bring it here with them."

"Ze brooms are strong enough to haul a baby Ridgeback zat distance, and all zey vood need is a harness of some type." Kalle finished for him.

Charlie grabbed her in a hug and planted a kiss on her cheek. "Kalle Oskar, you are a genius! That is exactly what we can do. They will be leaving England this Saturday night. I can send them a letter to stop by Hogwarts first, get the Ridgeback, and fly here."

Timberdrake seemed very amused, and his large fingers were interlaced as he peered at the two dragon handlers. "One little thing, Weasley. Do any of your friends know how to handle dragons? Baby or no, Ridgebacks are not easy animals to handle, _especially_ for a long period of flying without a sleeping drought."

"No problem. Two of them have experience with dragon handling, and the other two work with other magical beasts. I think one does griffins and their varieties…like hippogriffs, and the other sea creatures."

"Very well then. I give my permission for this little endeavor. Remember that if your friends are caught carrying an illegal dragon, the Ministry of Magic _will_ be difficult to work with. Not to mention the European Wizarding Council, the International Confederation of Wizards, and the Ministries of the countries that they might pass through on their way here." The Warden's voice was dead serious, and Charlie nodded gravely.

"They will be careful. Thank you, sir."

"No, thank you, my boy. Another Ridgeback is a wonderful thing. We will take care of the rest of the details after it arrives. Have a good night, both of you."

Charlie and Kalle said good night to the Warden before leaving his office. As they walked down the hall, Kalle chuckled.

"And you zought he vood be hard to deal vith. You knoo he loves you, Charlie," Kalle said with a smile. "Everyvon loves you. You are great vith ze dragons, and vith ze handlers. You make everyvon feel velcome and, I zink, zat you vill be ze next Varden here at ze preserve."

"You think so, eh?" Charlie grinned. He draped one arm over her slender shoulders. "Timberdrake still has ten or so good decades ahead of him as Warden, I would say. That old bugger never seems to age at all. I heard some of the older handlers say that no dragon would even try to eat him, because he is too tough to chew. Bad luck for me and your vision."

Kalle laughed and gave the red-head a playful punch in the stomach. "You joke about zat, but I knoo you are as fond of Timberdrake as ze rest of us are."

"Right-o. Honestly, Kail, I would hate to see him go, and I hope it will not be for a long time."

Charlie opened the door to the building, and they looked out. The sky was pitch black and rain was falling from the sky as hard as hail. He gave a grimace and sigh.

"Looks like we must make a run for it. Cursed weather." He gave Kalle a wink.

"Ve can alvays Apparate," Kalle suggested, though she already knew his answer.

"But what fun is avoiding the rain?" Charlie demanded playfully. "As I always say: when in Romania, ran through the rain!"

"Do you alvays say zat?" Kalle asked dubiously.

"Oh, c'mon!" He grabbed her arm and together they dashed from the dry safety of the main building. They splashed their way down the muddy stream that earlier that day had been the path down to the dormitories, kicking up the water nearly to their waists. The rain pelted them from above, and the dark sky brightened as a streak of white lightening shot across the black clouds. Charlie's free arm was shielding his eyes from the raindrops as he guided them to the building. Kalle was laughing as she ran beside him.

When they had reached the dormitories, Charlie slammed into the door and it swung wildly open. They were soaked to the bone, but neither seemed to care.

"Nowv, _zat_ vas Romanian fun!" Kalle exclaimed as she gasped for breath amidst fits of laughter.

"I'll say. Hey, Kail?"

Kalle was wringing the excess water from her chin length hair with her fingers. "Yes?"

"Have you ever thought of visiting England?"

"Vell, no. Romania is my home and I never really zought about leaving. I mean, even ven I vent to school, ze school vas in Romania."

"How can you be so sure that the Carpathia Institute for Wizardry is in Romania and not the Ukraine?" Charlie countered.

Kalle gave him a funny look. "I never really zought about zat. Perhaps it vas in ze Ukraine. Aren't you going to vite ur brozer?"

"Write my brother?" Kalle's accent had thickened during her few moments of confusion, making her last words a bit difficult to understand, but Charlie had been in Romania for almost seven years was used to her different accent. "Yeah. Where did you say that owl was?"

"Eizer your room or mine."

"Right."

They found the snowy owl perched on the back of a chair in Charlie's room, large yellow eyes staring unblinking as they entered. As Charlie went to the desk to write the letter, Kalle petted the owl. It ruffled its feathers in a friendly yet dignified manner, peering at the red-head. Charlie quickly signed his name, folded the letter, and reached for another parchment. A few minutes later, he was finished.

"Tell me what you think," Charlie told Kalle as he handed the two letters to her. Kalle scanned them over, nodding. "Zey sound good to me."

Charlie tied the letters to the owl's leg. "Take the small letter back to Ron, and take the larger one to Rhett Stoker, 17 Bruton Street, Carlisle, England." The owl gave a deep hoot to show it understood the instructions before launching off the chair, and soaring out of the window (which Charlie opened with his wand).

The red-haired handler turned to Kalle, grinning. "The night is still young. Would you like to play a game of chess?"

"I vood love to. By ze vay, I heard today zat ze Wales vill be coming here to Romania next monz." Kalle's eyes sparkled as she shared the news. Charles placed the chess board on the board between them.

"Wales will so beat Transylvania," the English wizard boasted with a grin. It was a tradition for them to put down the other's favored Quidditch teams, especially since it was close to the World Cup playoffs.

His companion leaned forward, eyes narrowed and a mischievous grin on her face. "Vant to play on it, English boy?"

"You know I'm going to win, Romanian gypsy." The chess pieces wandered out of their boxes and found their places on the board. Charlie's were the white set and Kalle's were the black.

"Ve vill see. Ve vill see."

THE END


End file.
